Triumphs raid Utrecht for club 50th

To mark the 50th anniversary of the Pre-1940 Triumph Motor Club, an invitation was offered by Dutch members for a raiding team from England to make the journey across the North Sea and to visit Utrecht for a long weekend.

As a result 10 club members and their partners took up the challenge, meeting at Harwich and Hull Ferry ports on Friday 2 September.

With a range of pre-war Triumphs including the ‘works’ 1934 Gloria Monte Carlo entry, a pair of 6-cylinder saloons and a tourer, a Vitesse 4 cylinder, a Southern Cross, two Dolomite tourers and a pair of Gloria tourers, later joined by the ‘Straight Eight Tribute Car’ driven by member Steve Myers, who lives in Ghent, a fabulous and varied line-up of cars graced the drives of the hosts’ houses in Utrecht on Saturday.

This array of gleaming machinery attracted many of the neighbours and friends of the Dutch hosts, who generously sponsored a new International Rally Trophy and donated this to the Club.

The intrepid gang of British visitors – some apparently nearly as old as their cars – were treated to an organised tour of the beautiful countryside to the East and North of Utrecht over the weekend, where the locals were seen to applaud the passing cars and several offers were made to buy the cars ‘as seen’!

Nevertheless, all the cars and drivers returned home safely on the Sunday night.